documentation, collisions, and context help

[Han-Wen Nienhuys]

address@hidden writes:
> http://www.lilypond.org/stable/Documentation/user/out-www/lilypond/Context-properties.html
> seems to imply that "Properties that are set in one context are inherited by 
> all of the contained contexts."
> 
> But I have not found this to be true.  For example,
> \property Voice.NoteColumn \override #'force-hshift = #1.0
> <b, c d4 > < e f g > < c d e >
> does what I want it to (collision detection on the seconds)
> 
> but
> \property Staff.NoteColumn \override #'force-hshift = #1.0
> <b, c d4 > < e f g > < c d e >
> does not.
> 
> Could someone clarify what that documentation means?

You're bumping into something else. Perhaps the manual should state
more clearly, in flashing neon:

     USE EXPLICIT \context IF YOU START A PIECE WITH A CHORD!

In the former case, the \property Voice make sure that the < > goes
into a voice. In the latter, you get three stems and 3 note heads, in
overprint. The force-hshift value hasn't got anything to do with it.  

> Finally, I am now comfortable with the layout of the site and the 
> terminology involved, but it was VERY time consuming (lots of unnecessary 
> websearching, because I didn't know where to look within the site) to learn 
> to use the non-note-entry parts of lilypond.  Clearer pointers to (for 
> example) \property syntax, why exactly you should care what a Grob is, and 
> more examples of "weird" examples (rather than just "larger" as are found on 
> the complex examples page) would be wonderful.

ok. thanks for the tips -- we'll look into it. One question though:
did you work through the tutorial from start to end, or did you simply
dive in?

-- 

Han-Wen Nienhuys   |   address@hidden    | http://www.cs.uu.nl/~hanwen/